Hasta La Gadget!

500px had a bit of controversy back in January when the iOS app was temporarily pulled from the iTunes App Store due to nude photo searches. As of today however, 500px has returned with a bit of good news for Chrome users — a 500px app is now available for Chrome. This app release is for the Chrome browser running on Mac and Windows as well as Chrome OS computers including the new Chromebook Pixel.

The 500px app can be found by way of the Chrome Web Store. The app is free to download, free to use and thankfully, it brings the features that one could expect. Of course, some may remember the 500px app from the Chromebook Pixel announcement as the app was briefly shown using the touchscreen display on the Pixel. In fact, they are touting this app as being touch-enabled and as being built for the Chromebook Pixel laptop.

Another feature of the 500px app includes being able to browse images by category including Popular, Editors’ Choice, Upcoming and Fresh. The app will also allow users to create a personalized photo stream using Flow, click (or in the case of the Pixel, tap) images to view them full-screen and read descriptions and photographer’s information. Additionally, social sharing also comes in with Google+ as well as Facebook and Twitter.

Otherwise, it was pointed out that the 500px app is more than just a Chrome extension, it is actually an app. That is to say the app launches outside the browser and works offline by default. 500px for Chrome aside, the company has also said they are working to release an update to their Android app in the near future. The Android app update is expected to bring it “up to iOS parity and beyond.”

[via TNW]

500px app comes to Chrome is written by Robert Nelson & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If you’re into DSLR photography, remotely controlling the thing is a pretty common want for new users and seasoned veterans alike. Satechi’s BT Smart Trigger, which starts shipping today, is a remote that works with a range of Canon DSLRs, connecting to the camera’s hot shoe and giving them full control over their camera’s shutter. It also doubles as an intervalometer, making it possible to get those cool time lapse and extended exposure shots that never fail to draw the appreciation of photography fans.

The Smart Trigger connects to your camera via USB, and rests in the hot shoe mount normally reserved for flashes and other accessories. It communicates with the iPhone via Bluetooth 4.0, meaning it’s a low power consumption device which can get up to 10 years of battery life, and has a range of 50 feet. The trigger app works with iPhone and iPad, and features both a basic standard shooting mode, as well as Manual Shot, which allows for long exposures (like the ones where you see people writing things in the air with sparklers), or Time Shot, which captures a series of images that are then stitched together to generate time-lapse images (like the lightstream photos you see of nighttime cityscapes with busy thoroughfares).

The Satechi Bluetooth 4.0 Smart Trigger might not be able to relay a live feed of the camera’s digital viewfinder, as Canon’s official remote app can with the Canon 6D’s built-in Wi-Fi radio, but at $44.99 it’s an excellent option for amateurs and enthusiasts looking for an easier way to take time-lapse and long exposure specialty shots, using the iPhone they already know and love. Satechi also says that Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note 2 compatibility will be coming sometime in March, so owners of two of the most popular Android smartphones will be able to join in on the fun at that time, too.

Nikon has announced a new DX-format digital SLR camera called the D7100, and it looks like a very capable camera for the price. It uses a DX-format CMOS sensor, offering an 24.1 megapixel resolution. Nikon fits the camera with its EXPEED 3 image-processing engine providing high-performance without an optical low-pass filter.

The camera promises support for lenses with a maximum aperture of f/8 and the camera has a 51-point autofocus system for quick and accurate focusing. One of the interesting features of the camera is a 1.3x DX crop that provides the photographer with increased zooming. It also has the ability to shoot continuously at up to seven frames per second. In addition to stills, the D7100 can record 1080 60i/30p resolution HD video, a nice improvement over the 1080/24p of the previous-gen D7000.

The camera also features a new Spot White Balance option and a high-performance optical viewfinder providing 100% frame coverage. The rear LCD screen is a 3.2-inch unit, offering 640×480 resolution. The camera has dual SD memory card slots and an integrated pop-up flash.

The camera ships on March 21, 2013, and is available to pre-order right now for $1199.99 for the body only, or $1599.99 with an 18-105mm zoom lens. For more details on the D7100, DPReview has a detailed hands-on preview here.

Flickr has released an update for its iPhone app, bringing with it a handful of new features and some improvements that make the service altogether more fun to use. After updating, users will find that they can now mention friends directly from the app rather than having to use the desktop, in addition to some other improvements. User can grab it now from the App Store.

With the updated app, iPhone users can now create more social interaction with photographs thanks to the ability to mention friends via the app itself. This is simple enough, using the rather conventional mention method of “@person,” which will pull up a list of contacts. From that list, a contact can be selected, and a description or a comment provided. That friend will likewise receive a notification letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Another useful feature that has been added is the ability for a user to download his or her own images from their Flickr account to their iPhone. The downloaded images will be added to the handset’s camera roll, where they can then be uploaded elsewhere or shared in a message. The images are automatically downloaded in their highest resolution; the setting to accomplish this can be found under the “Sharing” menu.

Last but not least is the improvement in speed, which provides substantially faster uploads over the previous version. This is accomplished using two methods: “magic” in photo optimization has been implemented, and users can now add titles and descriptions while the upload process is happening, eliminating the need to wait and making the overall process faster.

[via Flickr]

Flickr updates iPhone app with friend mentions and more is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If the NFL ever loosens its strict equipment standards, it might one day be able to provide fans with a unique view of the game thanks to research being done at Carnegie Mellon University. Kris Kitani, a postdoctoral research fellow at the school, has developed a clever piece of software that can stabilize footage captured from a camera-equipped spinning ball. More »